Assassin’s Creed Shadows: A New Perspective on the Templars

This article contains MAJOR SPOILERS for Assassin’s Creed Shadows.

It’s been several years since the dynamic struggle between the Assassins and Templars was the focal point of the Assassin’s Creed series. In Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, events unravel over a millennium before the Brotherhood and Templar Order took shape. Then, Assassin’s Creed Origins portrays these groups in their early days as the Hidden Ones and the Order of the Ancients. Meanwhile, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla hints at the Templars’ origins. But now, Assassin’s Creed Shadows reintroduces the classic Assassin-Templar conflict, though it doesn’t fully dominate the narrative.

Instead, much of Assassin’s Creed Shadows zeroes in on the Shinbakufu, a shadowy faction responsible for the murder of Naoe’s father and her own near-death experience at the game’s outset. After dismantling the entire Shinbakufu in Japan, the Templars enter the scene—and the game doesn’t shy away from showcasing their villainy.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ Templars Are Truly Evil

Duarte de Melo – A Sadistic Slaver

As players near the climax of Assassin’s Creed Shadows, they will access Yasuke’s personal missions—quests that involve targeting Templars intricately linked to his past. The storyline’s details are only fully revealed as the missions progress.

First on Yasuke’s hit list is Duarte de Melo, a character the game quickly paints as a vile figure. When Yasuke nears Duarte’s ship, you witness a chilling scene: Duarte tortures a man, reprimanding him for crying, and then coldly ends his life.

When Yasuke faces Duarte, the story unveils a connection—Duarte is the vile slave trader who captured Yasuke and his mother years ago. Their confrontation is fierce, and Duarte’s racist disdain for Yasuke is evident. As Duarte meets his demise, his final words are steeped in hatred: “Filth like you does not deserve a name.”

Kimura Kei – Training a New Generation of Templars

Though not at the top of the Templar hierarchy, Kimura Kei has assumed a leadership role in Japan. Yasuke finds him diligently grooming the next wave of Templars. During their bout, Yasuke offers Kimura chances to abandon his Templar allegiance, but Kimura clings to the belief that the Templars are Japan’s only hope for peace amid the civil strife.

Nuno Caro – The Author of Yasuke’s Pain

At the core of Yasuke’s personal missions, and possibly the game’s climactic confrontation, stands Nuno Caro, former captain of the ship Yasuke and his mother were aboard. It comes to light that Duarte discovered Yasuke’s mother rifling through Nuno Caro’s cabin documents. Reacting mercilessly, Caro executed her in Yasuke’s presence to instill fear among the crew and captives.

Though Caro intended to kill Yasuke too, a mysterious member of the Assassin Brotherhood intervened, allowing Yasuke to leap into the sea during the chaos. Rescued by Jesuits Luis Frois and Alessandro Valignano, Yasuke survived. Over time, Caro wormed his way into Japan, infecting it with Templar influence.

The Beginning of the End

After their duel, as Nuno Caro lies defeated, he chillingly declares that his death signals the “beginning of the end” for Yasuke and his allies, marking the dawn of open warfare between the Templars and the League of the Hidden Blade.